Mrs. Ellen Lee Bridewell Elliott went to be with the Lord on 17 August 2011. Mrs. Elliott was born in Beauregard, Mississippi, on 18 April 1917. Her father was Mr. Nathaniel Weeks Bridewell and her mother was Mrs. Bettie Duncan Bridewell.

Mrs. Elliott had six brothers and sisters. Her brothers are Lt. Francis Bridewell, killed in World War II; Nat Bridewell, deceased; Dr. Ross Bridewell; and Major Joseph Bridewell. Her sisters are Charlotte Swain and Clarissa Cordre.

Mrs. Elliott's education included an AA degree from Montreat Anderson College in Black Mountain, North Carolina; a BA from North Western State University in Louisiana; and a Masters in Religious Education from the Presbyterian School of Christian Education in Richmond, Virginia. Following that, she took extensive post-graduate work.

She was married to the Rev. Mr. Edwin Powers Elliott, Sr., in 1946 at Clifton Forge Presbyterian Church. Rev. Elliott, founding pastor of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in Manassas, died in 1998. Rev. and Mrs. Elliott moved to Manassas in 1962 when he was called to be pastor of the Manassas Presbyterian Church.

Mrs. Elliott was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the United Daughters of the Confederacy.

Mrs. Elliott's children are the Rev. Dr. Edwin Powers Elliott, Jr., died 11 October 2009, and Francis Moxom Elliott.

Mrs. Elliott worked in churches in four states along with her husband and taught in the public schools in Louisiana, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. She was Guidance Counselor at Parkside Junior High School for many years until her retirement.

Following her formal retirement, she worked as editor and circulation manager for the Christian Observer Magazine, founded 1813, until her second retirement in 2007.

Mrs. Elliott is survived by her second son, Francis; his wife, Grace D. Arnold Elliott; and their four sons: Benjamin Elliott and his wife, Lisa E. Elliott; Adam Elliott; James Elliott; and Lee Elliott. Also surviving are Edwin P. Elliott, Jr.’s widow, Anne B. Elliott, and their three daughters: Laura Elliott, Rebecca Zadell and her husband Jerome, and Dr. Elizabeth Elliott.

The funeral will be at Reformed Presbyterian Church on 27 August 2011 at 10 a.m. Donations may be made to the Reformed Presbyterian Church at 9400 Fairview Avenue, Manassas, VA 20110. The phone number is 703-361-2300.

In a July 2011 non-binding vote, the Fremont session unanimously voted to leave the PCUSA because of the denomination’s non-adherence to biblical standards including the 2010-2011 vote of PCUSA presbyteries to remove the Fidelity and Chastity Standards for ministers and elders.

Cheyne attributes the minority opposition to a “misunderstanding of the word of God. They have used ancient texts in the Bible and have taken them out of context….You can’t use them in the 21st century.”

Cheyne cites several Old Testament texts including:

“Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you beat him with a rod he will not die.” (proverbs 23:13)

“Behold I have two daughters who have not known man; let me bring them out to you and do them as you please.” (genesis 19:8)

“Happy shall he be who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock!” (Psalm 139)

Cheyne concludes: “We are citizens of the 21st century and we can no longer accept the words of ancient writings. If we are to accept the Biblical imperative we could easily find ourselves either in trouble with the local social work department or facing long prisons sentences….I think the church has got to be inclusive, not an exclusive club…The church must accept everyone, irrespective of their gender. I think everyone’s got gifts they can use for good. We should recognise that….It is a medical fact that people do not choose their sexuality. In the same way they are born with 10 fingers and toes they are born with their sexuality….There are many people who are gay and exercise a loving and pastoral ministry within the church. And we thank God for their gifts, dedication, care and commitment. Let’s move away from those ancient texts that cause nothing but misunderstanding and deeply rooted prejudice.”

“The idea of [Obama] talking only of the Muslim who died on 911 or the Muslim first responder that died on 911 (if there were more, you'd have heard about it) is classic Islamic supremacism. Every death was an incalculable loss, every death an attack on this country.”

“If Obama and the Islamic supremacist machine is so insistent on pointing that out, why not point out that, according to Islam, they died as martyrs in an act of jihad? Further, why is the motive behind these acts of war, jihad, prohibited from the national conversation or more specifically, this dinner?”

“This is sedition. This speech by the President of the United States in the wake of the single largest loss of life in one day by devout Muslims in the act of jihad is treason.”

“The White House’s published guest list for this year’s Ramadan Iftar dinner…. excluded the names of several controversial advocates who have attended the event in the past, including some who…did attend...”

In a 7 August 2011 statement, the Religion Communicators Council (RCC) urged journalists and bloggers to “pursue accuracy, respect and understanding of people of all faiths and faith communities…” in news coverage of the tenth anniversary of the 11 September 2011 attacks.

The RCC called “for responsible discussion of religion and of all faith groups, seeking the understanding and acceptance of religious communities…” because the anniversary of the 2001 attacks could “bring about painful recollections of terrorism and its effects," and that reports about the attacks “could become heated and distorted as it intermingles the religious identity of participants in those heinous acts.”